Integrating Environmental Values in Societal Decision-Making: Theories, Ecosystem Services, and Valuation Critiques

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering environmental ethics value theories, decision theory concepts, ecosystem services classifications, and valuation critiques from Module 3.

Nihilism

The philosophical value theory stating that nothing has any intrinsic value.

Egoism

The value theory stating that only the individual self has intrinsic value, while no other humans have value except possibly instrumental value for promoting one's own good.

Anthropocentrism

The value theory positing that all humans possess intrinsic value, whereas all other animals have only instrumental value for humans, or no value at all.

Zoocentrism

The value theory positing that all animals capable of experiencing pleasure or happiness hold intrinsic value, while other organisms hold at most instrumental value for sentient animals.

Biocentrism

The value theory stating that all and only living organisms hold intrinsic value, while lifeless matter and energy can have, at best, only instrumental value for organisms.

Ecocentrism

The value theory stating that all organisms, species, and ecosystems hold irreducible intrinsic value, while lifeless matter and energy have at best instrumental value.

Cosmic Universalism

The value theory asserting that all organisms, species, ecosystems, and even lifeless matter and energy possess intrinsic value.

First Step in Making a Decision

In decision theory, the initial step of realizing that there is a decision to be made.

Opportunity Cost

The value of the best alternative option forgone when making a specific decision or choosing a given action.

Ecosystem Services

A framework that conceptualizes the natural functions and processes of ecosystems as services provided to humanity.

Supporting Services

Foundational ecosystem processes—such as nutrient cycling, soil formation, and primary production—that underpin and enable all other ecosystem service categories.

Provisioning Services

A category of ecosystem services that provides material outputs, including food, fresh water, wood and fiber, and fuel.

Regulating Services

A category of ecosystem services that moderates environmental conditions, including climate regulation, flood regulation, disease regulation, and water purification.

Cultural Services

Non-material ecosystem benefits enjoyed by humanity, encompassing aesthetic, spiritual, educational, and recreational values.

Use Value

The value derived from direct interaction (consumptive or non-consumptive) or indirect interaction with an ecosystem service.

Non-Use Value

Value attributed to environmental resources without current active utilization, such as bequest value for future generations and existence value.

Option Value

The value placed on maintaining the ability to utilize an ecosystem good or service at some point in the future.

Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005)

A major global assessment finding that $15$ out of $24$ evaluated ecosystem services are degraded or used unsustainably.

Costanza et al. (2014) Findings

A valuation analysis establishing that the estimated annual global value flow of ecosystem services ($187\text{--}217$ trillion in 2025 US$) is larger in magnitude than Gross World Product ($118$ trillion in 2025 US$).

Monbiot's Critiques of Pricing Nature

Four core issues raised by George Monbiot: the difficulty of determining a price, pushing nature further into the market system that harms it, ignoring power dynamics, and compromising core values and framing.